Nissan has confirmed that the popular Nissan LEAF, now on its second generation, will disappear by 2025, to make way for an as-yet-unnamed new small SUV. That new all-electric model will be based on the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance’s CMF-EV platform.
The news came from the head of Nissan’s European division, Guillaume Cartier, who spoke with the Autocar website.
The current LEAF is the second generation of the model, and it debuted in late 2017 for the 2018 model-year. It’s expected it will continue to be offered largely unchanged until it is replaced by the new Nissan SUV in or around 2025. As a reflection of the model’s enduring popularity, the automaker expects to sell 100,000 units per year from here on in, despite the model’s lame duck status.
In the short term, then, consumers will be able to choose from the LEAF or the new, larger Ariya all-electric model within the Nissan lineup. The latter model is obviously more modern and far more up-to-date in terms of its technology, but the LEAF is considerably more affordable, having recently benefited from a substantial price drop (MSRP is now $37,498 for the 2022 model) to keep it competitive with its principal rival, the Chevrolet Bolt (MSRP $38,198 for 2022). The LEAF+ variant delivers a range of 363 km with its 62-kWh battery pack, compared to 417 km for the Bolt.
That middling range is one reason why Nissan is probably content with replacing the LEAF with a more-modern small SUV model. By 2025, it’s safe to say that 363 km won’t cut it with consumers, for whom 400 km is already now increasingly considered the floor for what’s expected from an EV.
As a comparison, the new Ariya, which is set to debut early next year after a few delays, can deliver a range of up to 482 depending on the configuration chosen.
First introduced in Japan and the U.S. in late 2010, the Nissan LEAF originally offered a range of 117 km, which at the time was still ground-breaking. It has won numerous awards in its lifetime, and it proved a popular choice for consumers both in Canada and globally (worldwide sales hit 500,000 units by the end of 2020). Earlier that year, the LEAF finally lost its title as the world’s all-time best-selling BEV to Tesla’s Model 3.
Nissan has targeted 80 percent of its global sales consisting of all-electric vehicles by 2030; it also wants BEVs to make up 40 percent of its U.S. sales in that same time frame. The company’s larger goal is to attain carbon neutrality by 2050. In the nearer term, the automaker plans to electrify its entire model range (so either all-electric or E-power hybrid) by 2025.
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